Statutory bodies

Mr. Drahota studied at University of Economics, Prague and completed an Executive MBA program at the University of Chicago. Before joining Colt CZ, Mr. Drahota worked for almost 12 years in investment banking and financial markets for Société Générale Group, most recently as Managing Director, Head of Central and Eastern Europe, based in Paris. During 2014-2015, he served as a senior advisor to the Deputy Minister of Finance of the Czech Republic responsible for financial markets. Mr. Drahota has a broad non-executive director experience, and currently serves, inter alia, as a representative of the Ministry of Finance on the Supervisory board of ČEPS. Mr. Drahota has been with the Group since 2014. He has been appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Colt CZ effective 1 July 2021.

Mrs. Poluchová has a Master’s Degree in Management from the Business College of Silesian University, Karviná. She joined the Group in 1995 as the Export Sales Manager in the Czech Republic. She relocated to the United States in 1998 and became Vice President and Treasurer of the newly established CZ-USA. In 2004 she was appointed to the positions of President and Chief Executive Officer of CZ-USA. Mrs. Poluchová has been instrumental in the growth of CZ-USA, which has helped transform the Group into a sizeable player in the small arms market. She has established a strong team that is continuously growing the Group’s presence and recognition in the United States.

Mr. Adam is a graduate of the Faculty of Law of Charles University in Prague and the joint LL.M. programme of Nottingham Trent University and the Faculty of Law of Masaryk University in Brno. Before joining Colt CZ, Mr. Adam worked for two years as an attorney and partner at HAVEL & PARTNERS, law firm. He also has broad executive director experience. He worked for eleven years in various managerial positions at Airport Prague, Czech Aeroholding and Czech Airlines, including nine years as a member of the Board of Directors, where, in addition to the legal department, he also managed the finance, HR and IT departments. In Colt CZ, Mr. Adam is responsible for legal affairs, compliance and risk management.

Jan Holeček studied economy and finance at Bentley University, USA. In 2016 he started his career in Siemens as market analyst, later on as business development specialist. From 2017 to 2021, he worked at Česká zbrojovka, a. s., first in the position of analyst, then as marketing director and member of the board of Česká zbrojovka responsible for sales. Since July 2021, he has been a member of the Colt CZ Group Board of Directors responsible for business.

Dennis Veilleux is the Chief Executive Officer of Colt Holding Company LLC. With 35 years of experience in the industry, Mr. Veilleux has deep expertise in firearms manufacturing, design and business. Since joining Colt in 2006 and prior to being appointed CEO in 2013, Mr. Veilleux served in several key positions for Colt, including Executive Director of Engineering, Vice President of Manufacturing, and Chief Operating Officer. Before Colt he spent three years with GE Armament Systems where he participated in the manufacture and development of military weapon systems, he worked eight years at Sturm Ruger and eight years at U. S. Repeating Arms Company (FN Group).

Jan Zajíc graduated in Economics and Management at the Faculty of Business and Economics of Mendel University in Brno. Prior to joining Česká zbrojovka, he worked in various managerial positions in industrial companies in the Czech Republic and abroad. He started his career in Fatra, plastic producer based in Napajedla, then in the Continental Barum plants in Otrokovice and Púchov, Slovakia. In the Continental Group, he held various positions in the financial management and controlling at the production plant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and subsequently at the company’s headquarters in Hannover, Germany. Jan Zajíc, a native of Uherské Hradiště, was working at Česká zbrojovka since 2019 as its CFO. Since November 2020, he has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Česká zbrojovka.

Mr. Aguilar served 35 years with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the United States Border Patrol, acquiring a wealth of knowledge and experience in border law enforcement and administration, domestic and international policing, strategy, tactics, and policy development. He served the last three and a half years of his career as the Acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the highest-ranking career officer in the largest U.S. federal law enforcement organization. He retired from his career in U.S. Government’s service on 31 March 2013. Mr. Aguilar acts as an independent, non-executive member of the Board of Directors.

Gen. Casey has been member of the Board of Directors of CZ-US Holdings, a Colt CZ subsidiary, since 2021. Gen. Casey is a published author, and currently serves as a Distinguished Senior Lecturer of Leadership at the SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University, and as the Rice Family Professor of Practice at the Korbel School, University of Denver. He lectures on leadership internationally at business schools and to numerous organizations. Before joining Colt CZ, Gen. Casey served 41-years in the U.S. Army, including as the 36th Army Chief of Staff from 2007 to 2011. From 2004 to 2007 he commanded the Multi-National Force – Iraq.Gen. Casey also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the United Service Organizations, the premier support organization for U.S. servicemen and women, as a director of Leonardo DRS, a leading defense technology innovator, and the Center for Global Development, a research institute focused on promoting economic growth and development around the world. In addition, he serves as a member of several advisory boards for companies engaged in robotics, resilience and supporting veterans. Gen. Casey graduated from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and holds a master’s degree in international relations from Denver University. He brings to the board a deep knowledge of the military and a demonstrated history of leadership in the armed forces, academia, the non-profit sector and industry.

Mr. Jean-Louis Vanderstraeten has been member of the Board of Directors of CZ-US Holdings, a Colt CZ subsidiary, since March 2022. He has over 40 years of experience in Defense Contracting, Business Planning, Operations Management and Corporate Finance. Prior to joining Colt CZ, he was Advisor to the Chairman of Fabrique Nationale Herstal (FN) and the Browning Group. Prior to that, he served as the President & CEO of FN Manufacturing, LLC in Columbia, SC from 1998 to 2014, and as Vice President and CFO of both FN Manufacturing and U.S. Repeating Arms Company (USRAC), an affiliate company to the Browning, Inc organization, which traded as Winchester Rifles and Shotguns in New Haven, Connecticut. FN Manufacturing, LLC is a subsidiary of FN Herstal located in Liege, Belgium, which is one of the largest small arms producers for the U.S. Military and Law Enforcement. In 1996, he moved to Hong Kong for an 18-month assignment as CFO of the Asia Pacific Division of SAIT-Radio Holland, SA, a company servicing and trading in navigation and communication systems. Mr. Vanderstraeten holds a Financial Degree from the Chambre Belge des Experts Comptables in Liege, Belgium. He lives in Columbia, South Carolina.

JoAnne McCormick has over 23 years of business experience managing people, projects, departments and businesses. She has worked in manufacturing, technology and distribution bringing to the table a wealth of industry knowledge. Having her CPA designation and an Honours Math Degree, she has overseen finance at a variety of firms, driving improved profitability, teamwork, strategic planning and financial reporting. Ms. McCormick joined Colt Canada in January of 2019 as Vice President of Finance and Administration. In that time, she has been integral to the continued modernization of Colt Canada to meet current demands all the while setting up the organization for future growth. On June 15, 2020, Ms. McCormick was promoted to President of Colt Canada. She works with the Canadian Leadership Team developing the future strategy for Colt while working on optimizing the current operations. Prior to joining Colt, Ms. McCormick worked at Dimplex from 2017 to 2019 where she integrated a $50M acquisition into Dimplex’s business and developed the budget and forecasting processes allowing the company to accurately forecast its business. For 10 years, Ms. McCormick was as Vice President of Marler-Haley, North America, a manufacturer and distributor of tradeshow exhibits.